Health Care Reform Information

Essential Health Benefits

Public Comments about Essential Health Benefits.
See what Tennesseans said!
[UPDATED, August 17th, 2012]

News and Information

Commerce and Insurance Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak will be conducting outreach meetings across the state to gather input from Tennesseans about the health conditions that should be covered under essential health benefit categories.

These public meetings are being held to gather public opinion on the determination of an essential health benefits package for health insurance coverage under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or PPACA.

All interested parties are invited to indicate which of 10 potential benchmark plans designated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services should be selected by the state as a benchmark or reference plan. Interested parties may also indicate how any of the plans might be modified, either to ensure the benchmark covers each of the 10 PPACA-required benefit categories, or for other reasons.

After considering the public input provided at the meetings and through written comments, Commissioner McPeak will recommend an essential health benefits benchmark to Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam. Within 30 days of an approval by the Governor, the Insurance Commissioner will enact an administrative rule, based on his recommendation, that will designate the benchmark plan and the essential health benefit package to be included in individual and small-employer group health insurance plans offered on or after January 1, 2014.

Share your comments

We want to know what you think. Share your thoughts with us by sending an email to PubComm.HRF@tn.gov or by mailing the address listed below.

To facilitate our posting of your public comments to our website, please include your comments in the body of your email. If you attach a documents with your public comments, please ensure it is a text-document that allows for the copying of text. Thank you.